District 207 cuts administrative costs by $1.1 million

Seven Maine Township High School District 207 administrators will be dismissed at the end of the current school year as the district looks to close an anticipated $17 million budget shortfall.

Many other administrators face heavier workloads and pay freezes in the wake of $1.1 million in administrative cost reductions the school board approved Monday night in its first move to address the looming budget problems.

The district is working on a plan to make an additional $14 million in cost reductions and to raise $2 million in revenue to eliminate the deficit.

The board Monday cut six jobs: three special education assistant department chairs and three student assistant program directors, saving $692,000. One of those is eligible to be shifted into a teaching position under union contract rules, spokesman Dave Beery said.

Also being eliminated is the position of youth campus department chair, saving $68,516. That person will move into a teaching slot, replacing someone who's retiring, Beery said.

At Maine East, South and West, the special education work will be handled by assigning additional duties to the department chairs and to each school's assistant principal for instruction. Work now done by the assistant program directors at each school will be handled by other staff.

The board also approved the following cuts, according to the release:

• Department chairs will teach more classes, saving $163,800.

• A salary freeze for most administrators will save $102,143.

• Merit pay will be eliminated for the new superintendent, Ken Wallace, and his salary frozen, saving $26,950.

• Athletic directors will take over responsibility for intramural coordination, saving $15,000.

• Administrators will pay a larger portion of professional development expenses, saving $20,000.

• Administrators will no longer get expense reimbursement for annual professional training they're required to complete by the state in order to maintain their job certification, saving $15,000.

District 207 administrators will make additional recommendations on budget cuts in December. The school board expects to act on the recommendations in January or February.